Sword and Shield
by Durbe the Barian
Summary: She was a sword of ice. He was her shield.


**Zexal Oneshot:**

**Sword and Shield**

**Romance**

**Durbe/Rio**

**She was a sword of ice. He was her shield.**

**(I don't own Zexal. If I did, I doubt people would find it so amazing. I'm hardly the writing team that brought these brilliant characters into being.)**

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Sword and Shield

* * *

Durbe had called himself the "White Shield of Barian."

Merag had called herself the "Sword of Ice."

The Sword and Shield of Barian.

That was what Nasch had referred to them as.

Alit and Vector constantly teased them about their naming.

"You're the perfect 'sword and shield combo' of Barian World," Alit had said.

"The lovebirds of Barian World, becoming a tag-team?" Vector asked. "I might still be dreaming."

What comments Vector had made were quickly silenced by Nasch. It was times like that that Durbe was glad he didn't know how to get on Nasch's bad side. He'd seen the results far too many times.

Regardless, the whispers lingered.

If it wasn't Alit, teasing them about their nickname, it was Vector, trying to ruin any of the peace the two of them had together.

But eventually, Durbe found that he didn't mind it too much. There was some truth in their words. He pretended to ignore them, all the while secretly taking them to heart.

"If you like her, simply tell her," Gilag had told him once. "It's embarrassing, watching the two of you ignore it like that."

His comment was quickly silence by Durbe. Out of all the people in the Barian World, Gilag had about the worst advice for problems such as the ones Durbe was experiencing. He'd sooner listen to Vector's advice than Gilag's. The last time someone had taken Gilag's advice in anything, they ended up getting serious burns.

Quite frankly, though, Alit had it coming. It was his own fault for believing that his 'hot-bloodedness' would shield him from the acidic waters of their home.

* * *

Needless to say, Durbe kept his feelings to himself. He didn't want Merag to know how he felt.

He was a Barian. Her shield.

She was an Empress. The sword of the Barian World alongside their leader.

The two of them were never to be. That was just the way things were.

But that didn't stop him from grieving when both his friend and special person disappeared, leaving close to nothing behind. Not even a trace of their existence was left, save Nasch's Barian Emblem.

It was all he had left of them.

He wasn't going to lose it.

* * *

It was during the war when he found them again.

Nasch, his best friend.

Merag, his special one.

Their appearances had changed, as did their names, but it was them. He was sure of it.

It brought him joy when they returned, but that joy was fleeting. Nasch seemed to be locked in a battle within himself and Merag acted as if she was convincing herself that she was who she was.

If Durbe allowed himself to cry when he saw this, he would have done so. Nasch was a great leader. Durbe had honestly thought bringing him back to the Barian World was a good thing. Now he wasn't so sure.

And Merag...

He had made it his duty to make sure she was happy. But he could tell, she was far from happy. In fact, it looked to him that the only reason she donned the persona of the "Sword of Ice" again was because she wanted to help her brother.

Not because she wanted it. But because she didn't want to let her brother suffer alone.

Again, Durbe refused to tell her how he felt. He constantly told himself that he was her shield first, anything else second. He would be her shield from sadness, even if he himself was to take the burden. That was what he had promised himself.

He could tell that there were human boys down on earth that could make her happy. Far happier than he had ever made her.

That overweight boy, Tetsuo, for one. He had seen that the boy had feelings for the girl, Rio Kamishiro, though they were closer to a schoolboy crush instead of an actual infatuation. He was very determined to be with her, something Durbe could relate to quite nicely. Even though she had received his feelings and called them a nuisance, he didn't give up on her. He accepted his loss and vanished. It was clear to Durbe that she was simply trying to abandon the one Tetsuo loved and become the Merag **she** had remembered.

If only Durbe could tell her that she was hardly the type to be so cold to humans, abandoning emotions in a heartbeat.

Then there was the Galaxy-Eyes Master that Misael had been so determined to defeat. 'Kaito,' he believed his name was. While Merag had told him that the two of them could hardly be called friends, having hardly spoken to each other, Durbe could tell that she held him in high regard. And just seeing his little brother, a kind, innocent soul who simply had a stream of bad luck, the Barian Emperor could tell that Kaito was a kind man himself, fully capable of making Merag, or Rio, happy.

These thoughts were engraved in his jeweled heart as the battle continued.

A knight's duty is to protect his queen. So it was Durbe's duty to protect Merag.

A sword has no defense. More so if it is a sword of ice. So a shield was necessary to protect the sword.

So would Durbe protect her happiness...with his life, if necessary.

END

* * *

**D.T.B: Please go easy on me. This is my first Durbe/Rio romance oneshot, and it was really hard to do. If you like it, leave a review. If you find this slightly weird or OOC, please think of this: Durbe doesn't open his mouth too often for a reason.**


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